


Esthetic

by star__light



Series: Stevidot A-B-C-Dary [5]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: ABC Challenge, F/M, Post-Episode s05e29-32 Change Your Mind, Stevidot Month 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2020-03-07 05:56:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18867115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/star__light/pseuds/star__light
Summary: A gem doesn't define you.





	Esthetic

**Author's Note:**

> Special: Stevidot Month!  
> "Starry Night" Prompt.

When Steven woke up suddenly in the middle of the morning, his gaze immediately focused on the view that the window in front of him assured. He showed it very often, but he really loved living in a small city where industrialization was the current priority and those fantastic scenarios were one of the main reasons.

It helped him to relax when he needed it, or they simply reminded him of those times when the situations he lived day to day were more mundane and simple.

That was one of those moments.

With a bit of despair, he had felt his stomach rising quickly his shirt, sighing with relief when the indications of that pink gem were visible. Although partially.

Everything was fine now, yes, but that did not mean that he did too. He was afraid to see the new pink diamond that now showed his stomach.

He shook his head and breathed heavily, removing traces of sweat from his forehead, almost completely withdrawing the sleep from his body.

That dream was over.

White Diamond was an official part of his family.

The rest of Diamonds too.

He was fine. He was in house.

And that experience had been nothing more than a cruel play of fate. Yes, it was that.

It was part of the past. And it was not right to hold on to the past so much.

But it was not good either to reserve these emotions; he had grown accustomed to being honest with them.

Nor could he could tell them so casually with the Crystal Gems. Whether they saw his mother in him or not, from his birth they had always watched over his welfare.

He must think about what he wanted to say, as his book explained. And maybe someone who did not see him as another person?

"Steven?" At that time, the hybrid raised his head, dizzy in the process, rushing out his shirt to hide the gem again. He turned 90° and could not suppress relief when Peridot's silhouette leaned up the stairs. "Are you okay? I could not help but hear the frantic sounds caused by your sleep cycle producer from the bathroom."

From her arms, Pumpkin's form revealed herself, and she barked to descend from the arms of her owner and quickly approached Steven's bed, who, slightly trembling, put his hand towards the head of the pumpkin.

"Yeah, yeah. I just had a nightmare, that's all," he murmured without caressing his friend's little pet. At no time did it seem to disturb her, it was not until she snuggled close to Steven offering support that he allowed himself to smile warmly.

Nevertheless, Peridot approached slowly and sat on the edge of the bed, resting both hands on the mattress.

She looked surprised at Steven:

" _Night... mer?_ What kind of mental representation is that?" She dared to ask when the brunette had not made eye contact for longer than she considered normal.

But although it did not have the effect she expected, she minimally managed to make Steven smile even if it was a little bit.

And it reminded him that she still had many things to learn.

"It's like ... a bad dream. A movie created by your subconscious that, instead of causing joy, leaves you with a feeling of discomfort, terror, you know?" Inconscientiously moved both hands emphasizing his message to the green gem.

Sensing it, he held both hands in his lap, flushed, feeling the night breeze feel colder against his skin and sweaty clothes.

But Peridot, accustomed to her partner's extravagant behavior, showed no sign of mocking, and tilted her head slightly, analyzing Steven's words.

"I understand..." she murmured sympathetically, and raised both legs to the bed to cross them and, not knowing what to say to reanimate her sleepy friend, played with her index fingers "do you want to talk about that?"

She had dared to ask after what she considered the slowest and most torturous seconds of her life. She did not notice any change in Steven's expression, and she looked down again, watching the blanket.

However, Steven's breathing, although calming little by little, was able to be heard in the room, and none had ever felt so much tension in any of their interactions.

Steven for not knowing what to do to recover the dream, and Peridot for not knowing how to make his friend feel better.

At that time, she cursed inwardly to remain a rookie on issues related to the Earth. She decided to investigate on her tablet what to do in case of nightmares as soon as this calms down.

The hybrid looked up, and his gaze lingered on the small triangular gem on his friend's forehead. Despite the lack of light, it still shone peculiarly. He had to add that he had never seen it outside his visor.

"What are you thinking about?" Peridot looked up again, not expecting that soon he would prefer to worry about her than to recover the dream.

But she remembered that it was _Steven Universe_  she was talking about.

"Oh, nothing, it's just..." allowed her legs to hang out of the bed, and dropped the upper half of her body on the mattress, and looked with struggle the starry night that illuminated the room of his friend and companion about the ceiling of the house "how things have changed so suddenly, you know?"

Momentarily, her voice had gone out, and given the way her gaze focused on a non-existent point, the brunette sensed that she had never touched his mother's topic with her.

"I thought the knowledge you had about my mother was scarce," he said, ignoring the discomfort caused by his partially sweaty clothes, and he approached Peridot whose expression was still lost.

"And that's right, all I know was from the reports and files of Era 1, but apparently they were just documents full of lies."

And so, Steven felt a kind of déjà vu. From that time when he believed that all he knew about her was the stories that Greg and the Gems tell him.

When everything was relatively simple, but the tensions against Homeworld existed.

"Pink Diamond's son, _wow_..." He sighed and was expelled from those memories, noticing later Pumpkin settle into a ball in the space between him and her owner. It was not much, but she did not seem to have any problems. "Does that make you a Diamond?"

And as soon as it appeared, Steven's smile, small though, vanished. Remembering the image, and feeling the now triangular figure in his abdomen, he swallowed hard. Peridot sensed it and quickly sat on the bed.

"Oh my stars! I'm sorry Steven, I didn't mean to" she put both hands on his shoulders. And although Steven's sly smile comforted her, not keeping eye contact did not help at all.

"That's okay, it was not your fault." He took the hands of the green gem, and thanks to the little light he was unable to see her cheeks acquiring another color. "Apparently I am, but that does not mean you should see me as such."

He clasped both hands warmly and pulled them away from his shoulders, sensing until now the difference between them. Not necessarily by color, it was more than obvious, but by the fact that they were too small.

It was probably to maneuver with wires and tools.

He smiled to himself.

"In Homeworld, each gem is the same." Steven looked up slightly, and saw the bright eyes of Peridot. "The only thing that differentiated us was the position of our gem and our facet. Always ready for duty without hesitation. Thanks to you it was that I managed to feel different, a unique gem..."

"Because you are, Peri." He pressed the contact, and they both made eye contact. His cheeks became a faint pink. "Something as simple as the esthetic of a gem, or your physical form, does not make you superior or inferior to someone else."

He gently stroked the knuckles of the green gem.

"I know it will be difficult for you to feel that you will once again be in command of a Diamond. But never, _**never**_ , think that I will see you with inferiority. Quartz, diamond, I'm still the same clod." Trying not to think about his gem, he allowed himself to smile warmly without breaking eye contact.

Just like that, he was able to see how Peridot's cheeks acquired a slightly different color, and that scenario brought more heat to his.

"You're right... and I'm glad. Steven will always be Steven, regardless of the gem," smugly, moved away the boy's face putting one of her fingers on his nose with a amused smile.

Before which laughed and embraced the gem in his arms, taking her off guard.

"Don't you have to sleep?" She asked, feeling her cheek against the hybrid's, both unusually warm. Of course, he always had a certain warmth, but now she felt more than usual.

"Nah, I'm not sleepy. Also, the night looks prettier than normal" and they both continued to see the night sky.

Of course, that would not remove a bad image. It was not so simple. But he knew that a simple conversation with someone who wanted to be who he was did not hurt anyone.

**Author's Note:**

> Sleep? What's that?


End file.
